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TYPES of HEC
'II. Classification of HEC types' II.a. Types of HEC situations Four aspects – habitat/population, elephant behavior, interface area and intensity of HEC all determine the type of HEC mitigation approaches we need to take. The constraints these situations impose and the mitigation actions needed for each need to be identified and a land use based classification needs to be adopted. This is becuase HEC does not always result because the human or the elephant population has increased in an area, Cultivating crops such as sugar cane, corn and bananas in large plantations can increase HEC tremendously in low human population areas. II.b. Habitat and population based classification ' II.b.1. What are the implications of habitat/population size for conflict mitigation and long-term conservation?' Adequate and reasonably intact habitat (with low/moderate/high elephant densities) This area would be an intact habitat patch of varying size (Large = 1000+ km2; medium = 500 – 1000 km2 and small = 250 – 500 km2). These numbers would need to be discussed and their implications to HEC and its management understood. This scale is important for prevention tool for future HEC (include for the policy lobbying). ' II.b.2. What needed?' Classification is ecosystem , management and landscape dependent e.g. Sri Lanka/India (grassland-dry deciduous with many small holder), Sumatra/Borneo/Thailand (Rainforest with many large scale owners) ' II.b.3. What other characteristic? Density vs Habitat for the HEC?' Two important thing: The remaining habitat (occupied habitat) and where is the changing and how is changing (for park manager). Level of HEC in that local site II.c. Methods: ' 1. Satellite images and GIS database 2. Field surveys 3. Location of hotspots (HEC and Forest loss) 4. Sampling based collection methods (refer to African Elephant Specialist Protocols, WCS HEC collection protocol) 5. GPS Location of ad-hoc reports and reports of conflict (as opposed to actual damage) 6. If resources are available; 7. Radio Tracking to establish elephant home ranges in that site. 8. Fragmented patches (with low/moderate/high elephant densities) These could be areas where elephants move between patches of habitat. Individual patches may not be greater than 250 km2 (see above for sizes greater than that) but the cumulative the area (as elephants use them) is greater than 250 km2. Need to identify a minimum size for individual patches and the total area of all patches used by elephants. Elephant survival will be dependent on government policy, a kind of land-use in larger matrix (tea garden, palm oil plantation) and other development activity, community support. While the aim should be to maintain at least the minimum intact patch sizes (to be defined), specifying a minimum patch size could end up being counterproductive in some countries (eg. Indonesia, Malaysia). Examples are India and Indonesia; 1. India : North Bengal – 200 elephants kill over 40-50 people/year and there is a lot of governmental effort in stopping the elephants from being killed in retaliation. It includes setting up of crop insurance and anti-depredation squads etc... Sri Lanka similar situation with Government will to ensure elephant survival in the long-term. 2. Indonesia: Sumatra: There were 12 populations in 1985 and due to conversion of habitat to plantations (coffee, palm oil etc...) and no governmental overarching policy, it is today reduced to 2 populations. Habitat patch (<250 km2 3i.e. pocketed populations) (with low/moderate/high elephant densities) Note: habitat and national park are not interchangeable terms. A national park does not necessarily provide the best habitat for elephants. Habitat can be inclusive of national parks but not the other way around. Where elephants are confined to a single patch or several patches that are less than 250 km2 and where the habitat may be inadequate to support the existing or a viable elephant population. '''II.c.1 Elephant population dependent and country specific characteristics. ''The following questions need to be considered to make this decision; ' 1. How isolated? (defined in terms of distance and characteristics of the intervening habitat). 2. The size of the elephant population relative to the total population country? 3. How severe is the conflict? 4. The tolerance for conflict in that local situation? ' II.c.2 Elephant behavior-ecology based classification: 4 This would help decide what type of mitigation action is needed. One or more or all these situations could be prevailing in an area. Need more clarification about the detail definition. The most important thing is the model of HEC for mitigation effort. 1. Opportunistic crop raiding: Where crop protection is absent or very poor and any elephant with access to unprotected crops will raid 2. Habitual raiders: When opportunistic raiders get used to ineffective/ poor or to routine crop protection measures become habitual raiders. a. Decision for habitual crop raiders => move to problem elephant. 3. Obligatory crop raiding: These elephants have inadequate or no resources in their home ranges and are dependent on raiding for much of their food needs. These are difficult to contain and even if we contain them then we need to fully understand the conservation implications of confining such populations using barriers? And how best to deal with such animals? 4. Dispersing populations (herds/bulls): There is a need to address this issue in terms of allowing re-colonization of past ranges where possible or in terms of stopping it where it is not practicable. ' II.c.3. Interface area based classification' What are the implications of various types of interface/boundary areas? 1. Hard and clear boundaries 2. Diffuse boundaries II.c.4. Intensity based classification An important component to HEC is measuring and understanding the severity in its various dimensions. 1. Impact on the quality of life 2. People’s perceptions 3. Economic impact 4. Physical intensity - Frequencies or area damaged II.d. Assessing HEC mitigation needs and monitoring of HEC mitigation Identify and list standard assessment/monitoring methods/protocols that would allow a proper assessment of HEC in all its dimensions. This would allow us to identify the best mitigation approaches that would address HEC is holistic manner. Assessing HEC mitigation needs: Elephant habitat, population and behavior related factors How to assess these and identify what role they play in generating/sustaining/escalating HEC: Interface related factors Evaluating the interface so as to identify its role in generating/sustaining and escalating HEC. Also its implications for HEC mitigation – is it conducive to HEC mitigation or does it create situations detrimental to HEC mitigation. II.e.Type of HEC situation and its implication for HEC mitigation tool(s) selection 1. Assessing HEC mitigation methods currently used 2. Assessing HEC intensity and its implication to the afected people 3. Conservation implications of HEC and its mitigation 4. Development of an analytical process that allows identification of all causes and factors that need to be considered when deciding on the best HEC mitigation method(s) suitable to a given site. ' II.e.1. WHAT TYPES OF HEC CAN AND SHOULD BE COLLECTED UNDER WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES' 1. Identify location 2. Assess/collect data 3. Analyze data/situation/type HEC 4. Classification system => match HEC type & mitigation 3 Some parks in SL are less than this…can/should we define numerically what is considered only a patch? Even musth males in SL in the CCR study have ranges less than 100km2 4 There was agreement at the workshop to drop these categories because defining habitual raiders and obligatory raiders for example is too difficult.